Kentucky.com: Daily Business Report
News, sports and entertainment from Kentucky.com

• Merrill Lynch selling unit to GE Capital
  GE Capital, the financial unit of General Electric Co., said Monday it will acquire the bulk of the Merrill Lynch Capital commercial finance operations, allowing Merrill to redeploy about $1.3 billion into other parts of its business.GE said the acquisition, for an undisclosed sum, will also add $5 billion in commitments to GE Capital Commercial Finance's base of $260 billion."These strong units fit perfectly with existing and very successful GE Capital businesses," Mike Neal, vice chairman of GE said.GE Capital will buy Merrill Lynch Capital's corporate finance, equipment finance, franchise, energy and health care finance units. Merrill Lynch Capital's commercial real estate finance unit is not part of the transaction."This transaction reflects Merrill Lynch's continued strategic focus on divesting noncore assets and optimizing capital allocation, while also enabling the redeployment of approximately $1.3 billion of capital into other parts of our business," said John A. Thain, chairman and CEO of Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc., the parent company of Merrill Lynch Capital.
• Pound hits all-time low against euro
  LONDON - The British pound hit record lows against the euro on Monday for the second straight day, weighed down by falling home prices and expectations that the Bank of England will keep cutting interest rates.The euro rose to 72.710 British pence, compared with the earlier record of 72.350 pence from May 27, 2003, according to the daily reference rate of the European Central Bank. That was the lowest since the euro began trading on financial markets in 1999.Traders seized on data showing that house prices fell 0.3 percent in December from the month before, with the average property staying on the market for more than eight weeks, the longest since the Hometrack survey began in 2001.The Bank of England cut its key interest rate a quarter-point to 5.5 percent earlier this month amid fears the fallout from the U.S. subprime crisis would hurt economic growth by making it harder for companies and consumers to borrow money. Lower interest rates mean lower yields on some pound-denominated investments and can weigh on its exchange rate.The pound also drifted lower against the dollar, to $1.9760 from $1.9828.
• Oil prices rise on supply concerns
  Oil futures drifted higher in light holiday trading Monday after predictions of a drop in crude inventories raised new supply concerns.With little other news to motivate buying or selling, investors focused on forecasts by analysts including Addison Armstrong, director of exchange traded markets at TFS Energy Futures LLC, who predicted crude supplies fell by 1.5 million barrels last week. Tim Evans, an analyst at Citigroup Inc., predicted that crude supplies fell by 2 million to 3 million barrels.The Energy Department's Energy Information Administration reports oil inventories on Thursday this week, a day late due to Christmas.Light, sweet crude for February delivery rose 82 cents to settle at $94.13 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after falling as low as $92.50 earlier. Prices rose more than $2 on Friday after the government reported consumer spending jumped more than expected in November, raising hopes that the economy will weather the crisis roiling credit markets and that demand for oil and gasoline will strengthen.Rising stocks also sent oil prices higher Monday; energy investors often view the stock market as a barometer of economic sentiment. But analysts cautioned against reading too much into price moves on light trading days around the holidays, noting that prices can be distorted when volume is low. The Nymex was closing an hour earlier, at 1:30 EST, and markets in the U.S. and many other countries will be closed Tuesday for Christmas.
• Treasurys drop; stocks rebound continues
  Treasury prices fell Monday as investors concentrated on opportunities in the stock market, with many players absent ahead of the Christmas holiday.Shaky credit markets, a deteriorating housing sector and uncertainty about the economy and the value of stocks in the fourth quarter have created unusually heavy demand for Treasurys, which are perceived as being among the safest assets.But Monday, investors focused on stocks for a second straight session, as some wondered if it is still possible that there will be a traditional late-year rally for Wall Street."There is a bit of selling today, but it most likely is just squaring positions," said Shubha Jayaram, a Treasury analyst at IDEAGlobal.com. "There is no data today and only a very light news flow. And volume is light."The bond market closed an hour early at 2 p.m. Eastern time after a light-volume session.
• Farmers to share $100 million burley settlement
  The holidays just got a lot merrier for more than 198,000 past and present burley tobacco growers in four states.The farmers and their attorneys will share an estimated $100 million under a final judgment entered Wednesday in their four-year-old lawsuit against the Lexington-based Burley Tobacco Growers Cooperative Association.About $50 million will be mailed in early January to farmers in Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio and West Virginia, the co-op said in a statement, but Robert Maclin, attorney for the farmers said "we are hoping to get them (the first checks) out this year."The attorneys will share 15 percent of the total and the eight original plaintiffs will receive a special payment of $10,000 each.Farmers will receive equal shares of the remaining 85 percent. If the total reaches $100 million, farmers might eventually get about $430 each.
• Venza is name of Toyota crossover
  Toyota announced the name on Wednesday of its crossover vehicle that will be built in Georgetown.The Venza crossover sedan will debut on Jan. 14 at the 2008 North American International Auto Show in Detroit.The vehicle won't start being produced at the Georgetown plant until fall.
• Wiis still proving elusive, a year later
  Anne Hunt has every "relative, friend and people I haven't spoken to in years"Ð including her ex-husband Ð looking for a Nintendo Wii video game system for her grandson."I have surfed the Web, written to companies and called stores until they recognize my voice," Hunt, of Georgetown, said.And still, she has come up empty-handed.More than a year after it was first released, the Wii has remained elusive for many shoppers as demand has outpaced supply. The system, which features a wand controller that gets users moving around rather than simply pressing buttons, has proven popular with people of all ages, a radical shift for an industry most commonly associated with kids and young men.That has led consumers like Hunt to resort to all kinds of strategies in hopes of snagging one.
• Racing authority examining steroids, irregular betting
  In the wake of baseball's steroids scandal, Kentucky racing authorities hope to begin enforcing a ban on using the drugs in racing horses."We know that it's been a problem in the horse industry, as well (as other sports)," commissioner Dr. Jerry Yon of the Kentucky Horse Racing Authority said Monday in proposing the move.Lisa Underwood, the authority's executive director, said anabolic and androgenic steroids are illegal to use in a horse that is racing, but the authority does not test for them.She said the authority plans to bring forward a rule based on the Association of Racing Commissioners International model that would establish thresholds for steroids in urine. That would give trainers some idea of the withdrawal time necessary for taking horses off the drugs before a race."If we can move ahead quickly, then we could have (the new regulation) in place within six months," Underwood said. She said the testing should not add to present costs.
• Farm bill included tax break for racehorse owners
  The Farm Bill passed by the U.S. Senate last week contains a much-sought tax break proposed by Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., for racehorse owners.The "Equine Equity Act," hailed by the horse industry, would allow owners to depreciate all racehorses over three years, and reduce the capital gains holding period from two years to one.The Senate's $286 billion version of the Farm Bill must still be reconciled with the House version and passed again by both houses before it can be sent to President Bush, who has said he would veto either version. A conference committee will likely tackle the bill in early 2008.The tax cut is necessary to spur outside investment in the horse industry, McConnell said."Horses are a vital part of Kentucky's economy and cultural heritage," he said in a statement.
• Springs Inn up for sale
  The Springs Inn, a Lexington landmark for almost 60 years, is up for sale.Lodging manager Brad Link, said the motel on South Broadway has been on the market for about two months. And while it's not closing, its banquet and food-a